How I Started Earning Extra Cash with n8n Automations as a Side Hustle

A few months ago, I was juggling my freelance work in Morocco, helping e-commerce startups with their branding, when I stumbled across a tool that changed everything for me n8n. It’s a no-code automation platform, and it became my ticket to earning extra income without needing to code. I’m sharing my journey because I know a lot of you are looking for side hustles that don’t require a tech background, and this might just be the one for you.

I started small, automating simple tasks like sending follow-up emails for a client’s online store. I’d spend my evenings in my tiny apartment, sipping mint tea, figuring out how to connect apps like Gmail and Slack using n8n’s drag-and-drop interface. At first, I was intimidated I mean, “automation” sounds so techy! But n8n made it feel like I was just drawing a flowchart. Within a week, I had my first workflow: a client’s abandoned cart emails were automated, and they were thrilled.

That’s when I realized I could turn this into a side hustle. I started offering automation services to other small businesses things like syncing customer data between apps or automating social media posts. I’d charge a small fee, and soon, I was making a steady stream of income. It wasn’t millions, but it was enough to cover my rent and treat myself to a nice couscous on Fridays.

Here’s what worked for me:

• Start with Simple Workflows: Pick tasks you already do manually, like sending reminders or updating spreadsheets. n8n connects to tons of apps, so you can automate almost anything.

• Find Clients in Your Network: I reached out to my existing clients and offered to automate one task for free as a trial. They loved it and hired me for more.

• Scale with Templates: Once I had a few workflows, I turned them into templates to save time. For example, I made one for automating email follow ups that I reuse for every client.

If you’re curious about getting started, I’ve put together a guide called Earn $1K/Month with n8n. It includes my best no-code scripts and tips on finding clients, even if you’re a beginner. You can grab it on Gumroad here: aixlabs.gumroad.com/l/Earn1KMonthwithn8n. It’s everything I wish I knew when I started!

What side hustles have you tried? Let’s chat in the comments I’d love to hear your stories!

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This post contains a link to a resource I created to help beginners start a side hustle with n8n.